


The Five Times Lucas Won The Silent Treatment and The One Time Dustin Did

by The Tozier Wheeler Twins (omfgiminlovewithneeks)



Series: Underappreciated Stranger Things Pairings [5]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-19
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-09-07 04:24:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20303425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/omfgiminlovewithneeks/pseuds/The%20Tozier%20Wheeler%20Twins
Summary: Lucas might have pretended to act annoyed whenever Dustin was being too loud or couldn't stop talking, but everyone who knew the ranger knew he loved every single sound that came out of the bard's mouth. That was why, his least favorite moments in his life were those when the blue-eyed angel gave him the silent treatment.





	The Five Times Lucas Won The Silent Treatment and The One Time Dustin Did

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bellabee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellabee/gifts).

> Hi everyone, and welcome to this one shot I've been working on.
> 
> Late birthday present for @[bellabee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellabee/). Hope you like it ;)

“C’mon, Dustin,” Lucas said softly, “just one word.”

That definitely didn’t work at all, but then again, it had never worked before. Annoying the curly-haired man had never worked — not even when they had been children. Other than this time, Lucas could only recall five other times where the love of his life used the silent treatment on him, and all five times had required more than just incessant bugging to break that treatment.

* * *

_ “Dustin, will you please talk to him already?” Mike asked exasperatedly. _

_ It was a normal Saturday night where the boys had decided to stay in Mike’s basement and play Dungeons & Dragons — a tabletop game Mike’s parents had gotten him on Christmas. They were in fourth grade, and they’d just found a whole new world to conquer. Well, he supposed they’d found more than just one new world, but he couldn’t exactly tell how many just yet, since apparently every time the game started, they were taken to another new and undiscovered land, where monsters resided, and where they could be heroes to innocent villagers, kings and princesses, or, once, a very wealthy elven tribe. _

_ Of course, sometimes they also messed up, or sometimes when luck really wasn’t on their side and they ran into something bad, they’d lose valuable gear and items. Today, Lucas had learned that if somehow he was the one to mess up and Dustin’s character had to pay the price, he’d get the silent treatment. _

_ “Dustin,” the black boy tried for the two-hundred-and-somethingth time. “Dustin. Dustin. Talk to me, please. Come on, Dustin.” _

_ The curly-haired boy still refused to speak, instead choosing to sit on the couch, cross his arms, and not look Lucas in the eyes. _

_ Mike and Will were currently cleaning up after the Party’s loss. After Dustin had dropped literally all his equipment upon death, not even a miracle could’ve saved them. That was why Lucas was now sitting next to the blue-eyed boy, trying to get his friend to talk to him, and annoying Mike and Will in the process. _

_ “Dustin,” he continued, “you know I won’t stop until you talk to me, right? Dude. C’mon. Dustin.” _

_ His incessant bugging was now accompanied by random poking to the other boy’s cheek, shoulder, arm, and basically anywhere. To be honest, he was quite impressed at the bard’s ability to ignore him, since he wouldn’t have been able to keep ignoring anyone if he were in this situation. _

_ But then something happened. _

_ Lucas’ finger slipped, missing the other boy’s elbow and landed on the side of Dustin’s stomach, just below the boy’s ribcage. _

_ And the kid let out a loud yelp, immediately squirming away before looking back at Lucas like he’d been caught red-handed. _

_ The black boy couldn’t stop his grin from slowly forming on his face. “Wait,” he said, “are you ticklish?” _

_ It didn’t matter what the curly-haired boy’s answer was, the way his eyes grew wide in panic was enough for him to slowly approach. _

_ “No, Lucas,” the bard slowly moved backward, holding his hands up. “Don’t do this. No!” _

_ There was no way the blue-eyed boy could get away before Lucas tackled him and started his assault. And by the time Mike and Will joined in, Dustin was definitely doomed. _

* * *

The ranger was definitely too old now to tickle the other man in order to make him talk.

Well, that was definitely a lie. He would’ve done that already if they’d been at home, or even at one of their friends’. Lucas might not have boundaries in most private places, but he definitely knew how to behave himself in public, or at least in places where anyone could see him pinning someone down and tickling them until they got too exhausted to even sit properly. If he hadn’t, the second time Dustin got really mad at him might’ve ended differently.

* * *

_ El had disappeared about eight months ago. Lucas didn’t believe that either, since every time he closed his eyes, it still felt like yesterday. Will had to go to the lab for his biweekly checkup, and with an extremely eloquent ‘busy’ as a reply, he assumed Mike was brooding like usual. The paladin hadn’t gotten over the fact that the girl he’d kissed had disintegrated in front of their eyes. That didn’t mean he and Dustin couldn’t have fun, though. The bard had managed to drag him to the arcade in his effort to get his name on every game’s top score. _

_ So far, he’d been number one on Galaga and Space Invaders, Will was Donkey Kong champion, Mike had claimed the Pacman crown, and Dustin had just won Centipede. The curly-haired teen was on his way to the throne in Dig Dug as well, but he’d taken a temporary break from that to try to rescue Princess Daphne in what the ranger would’ve called the best game ever solely because of the amazing graphics. _

_ “Hey, wanna grab a bite?” Lucas asked. _

_ “Not now, Lucas,” Dustin replied, eyes still glued to the game. “Kinda in the middle of something here.” _

_ “C’mon, man,” he groaned, “you’ve been at it for almost an hour now.” _

_ “Which means I’ve never been closer to winning this thing,” the bard gritted through his teeth. “If you wanna go grab something, it’s your choice. I won’t leave until I’m done with this.” _

_ “Whatever,” the ranger huffed. “I’ll be back in fifteen, not that you’re going anywhere anyway.” _

_ “While you’re at it, I want a Slurpee,” Dustin called after him before quickly turning back and cursing at the game. _

_ Lucas rolled his eyes as he started walking away. Once upon a time, he’d thought there was nothing Dustin loved more than food, but apparently, video games had trumped everything. Or maybe that was just Dustin’s competitive nature. It didn’t really make a difference to him since he still had to go alone — not that he minded going alone, but carrying everything back by himself would be slightly more difficult. Even though the bard had only asked for a Slurpee, he wasn’t a big enough asshole to get something to eat only for himself. _

_ When Lucas returned a while later, carrying two corn dogs, a box of nachos, a smoothie, and a Slurpee, his companion had gotten himself a few admirers. Some older dudes were standing behind Dustin, watching him play, so he supposed the bard was making progress. Of course, as luck would have it, something went wrong that exact moment. _

_ Maybe someone was actively trying to sabotage them, or it could be that whoever it was only wanted to prank him. Or perhaps, he was just really clumsy, although he’d like to think that wasn’t the case. Whatever it had been, the outcome was still the same: he tripped on something and the next thing he heard was Dustin’s loud cry as what would’ve been their lunch landed all over the curly-haired boy. Somehow, Lucas had managed to hold onto the corn dogs, but the nachos were now in the other boy’s hair, while the bard’s T-shirt was now soaked in a mixture of both their drinks. Other people would think he was in really deep shit with that new development, but they would’ve been wrong if the ranger’s accident hadn’t ended with the sound of Dirk the Daring dying behind his friend. _

_ “I— Uh,” he gulped, “at least I saved the corn dogs?” The black boy looked at his friend apologetically. _

_ “Perfect,” Dustin seethed, “now you have something to shove up your ass.” With that, the bard stormed off without looking back, and without saying another word to Lucas. _

_ In the end, it had taken a lot of apologizing and lots of promises to pay for everything the next couple of times they went to the arcade for Dustin to talk to him again. He definitely needed to get a job around the neighborhood. _

* * *

Now that he really thought of it, tickling the blue-eyed man back then might’ve been the wrong call. Dustin would’ve probably stopped talking to him for a week if he’d done that.

“C’mon, man,” Lucas begged, “just say something.”

Only if things had been that simple.

“Dude, don’t tell me I have to come there and kiss you senseless because I will,” the taller man warned half-heartedly. Everyone who knew him would know he wouldn’t do that, because even though he didn’t mind kissing the most wonderful boy he’d ever had the pleasure to meet, public displays of affection could draw unwanted attention to them, and along with it, unwanted threats.

Plus, he believed that trick only worked once.

* * *

_ “What did I do wrong?” Lucas groaned as he plopped himself down on his bed. “Why is he giving me the silent treatment again?” _

_ Mike was sitting backward on a chair and giving him the ‘are you fucking serious’ look. The paladin groaned and exhaled slowly. _

_ “I’m not even gonna try to tell you what you did wrong,” the raven-haired teen said. “But how the fuck did you manage to find a date two days before our prom?” _

_ “Natalie asked me,” he shrugged. “She wants to go to senior prom, so she needs a senior date.” _

_ “Should’ve led with that,” Max commented. _

_ “But why does it matter?” Lucas whined. “I told him I’d find him a date, didn’t I?” _

_ “Yeah, because that’s the problem,” Mike snorted. _

_ “What do you mean?” The ranger furrowed his brow and stared at his friend, who was suddenly very interested in his bedroom floor. _

_ “Let’s try it this way, shall we?” Max chimed in. “Do you want to have this girl as a date?” _

_ “Not really,” he shrugged. “I mean, I don’t really know her. But how’s that a problem?” The teen definitely hadn’t tricked the poor girl into going with him or anything. He hadn’t been the one to approach her with that plan. He should’ve been the good guy in this story. _

_ “No questions until the end of the lesson, thank you,” the redhead huffed. “Who do you want to take to prom, then?” _

_ “I don’t know,” Lucas mumbled, his eyes darting back and forth between Mike and Max, neither of which seemed to believe him. He had no idea where they wanted to take this, but he had a feeling he didn’t like it. _

_ “Really, Lucas?” Mike asked, raising an eyebrow. “You can’t think of anyone you’d like to ask to prom at all? Anyone who makes your breath hitch? There’s nobody on your mind when you listen to cheesy love songs on the radio? Are you sure you’re not currently thinking about someone?” _

_ Well, he was. He was thinking about a certain blue-eyed teen who was the smartest person he knew, whose hair looked so soft he’d been spending years wondering what it’d feel like running his fingers through them, who was currently not talking to him. His face was definitely heating up, but one good thing was, there was no way Max or Mike would know. _

_ “I— I don’t know,” he said sheepishly, not looking at either of his friends. _

_ “Gee, Mike,” Max said sardonically, “I wonder what I-Don’t-Know would do if they learned that the person they wanted to go to prom with just got himself a date.” _

_ “Good question, Max,” Mike jumped in with his sarcastic voice. “If I had to guess, I’d say they would decide not to go to prom, keep their distance, maybe even call Will and El to rant about it.” _

_ “Wait— What?” Lucas’ eyes widened at his friends. _

_ “Seriously,” Max huffed, “you’re both extremely obvious and oblivious.” _

_ “And you’re both terrible when it comes to relationship stuff,” Mike added. _

_ “Like you’re any better,” Lucas retorted. “But, you guys are serious? Like for real? Because this is not funny.” _

_ “We seriously want you both to stop dancing around each other like idiots,” Max rolled her eyes. “It was amusing at first, but it’s getting a bit frustrating now.” _

_ “Plus, we want Dustin to stop hogging Will and El,” Mike shrugged, “so please go and do something about this.” _

_ Lucas didn’t need to be told twice as he dashed out of the house, grabbing his bike and heading towards the bard’s house. Could it actually be true? Could Dustin really like him back like Mike and Max had said? Had they said that or had he imagined it? It had only been like five minutes, and he couldn’t even be sure what they’d talked about. For instance, he was about seventy percent sure that he hadn’t ranted about the curly-haired teen’s breathtaking blue eyes or radiant smile like his brain had been telling him, but that could’ve actually happened since things tended to be kind of hazy when he daydreamed about Dustin. _

_ Not until he arrived at his crush’s place did he realize he didn’t have a plan. He didn’t know what to say once Dustin opened the door. He didn’t even know if the blue-eyed teen would talk to him. Furthermore, what if Max and Mike had been wrong? What if Dustin didn’t like him that way? Would he make things worse? Could whatever he was going to do make his best friend stop talking to him forever? What was he even going to do? Suddenly there were more questions in his head than there had ever been, and that was saying something. However, one thing he knew was that he needed to do something about what he’d just learned. Slowly, he walked up to the bard’s front door and knocked. He’d just have to improvise on the go. _

_ When the door swung open, Lucas could see the brief moment his best friend’s eyes widened in surprise before the shorter teen’s expression turned into one of annoyance. It was clear that the other boy still had no intention of talking to him, but that wasn’t what he was focused on at the moment. There was no question what the bard had been doing, since even if his eyes hadn’t been slightly puffy and red, his eyelids were still wet. He hadn’t seen Dustin like this since the Snow Ball before their freshman year, which was definitely not long enough because he never wanted the teen to wear that expression. Furthermore, no matter how hard the curly-haired boy tried to mask it, he could see as clear as day the hurt in those blue irises he’d grown to love. _

_ Later that night, when Lucas thought back to this very moment, he was glad for not coming up with a detailed plan before coming to Dustin’s, because that would’ve been a huge waste — he would’ve thrown all his plans away the moment he saw his crush. So it was a good thing that he didn’t have any plans, because he didn’t have any problems with shutting his brain off entirely and letting his instinct take over as he grabbed the shorter teen’s face and crashed their lips together in a definitely-less-than-gracious manner. He wasn’t thinking at all. There was no ‘what if he didn’t like me’ or ‘is this even the right thing to do’ because his brain couldn’t form a single coherent thought. In fact, there were only two things filling every single cell in his body: the need to stop the boy of his dream from feeling hurt, and the overwhelming feeling of Dustin’s soft lips on his. All his senses were flooded with Dustin. His ears could only hear the boy’s surprised gasp. His eyes could only see the hurt in those blue eyes, even when he closed them. His nose was filled with the bard’s scent. He could only feel Dustin’s lips, and something that way later his brain would point out was the shorter teen’s fist on his chest. It was impossible for him to detect anything that wasn’t Dustin. There was no way for him to tell if they’d been kissing for hours or seconds, since ‘not enough’ wasn’t the most standard unit of time, but that was the least of his concerns. _

_ Eventually, because he knew they had to talk, Lucas reluctantly pulled away, but still held the shorter teen close enough to let him know he wasn’t going anywhere. _

_ “W-What was that about?” Dustin asked breathlessly, his voice hoarse. _

_ “I’m sorry, I was an idiot,” the ranger said softly as he looked into the other boy’s eyes. “I don’t even want to go to prom with Natalie. She just needed any senior to take her. I want to go to prom with you.” _

_ It took a while for his words to sink in, but he could feel the exact moment Dustin’s heartbeat sped up even more — at least he was about 83% sure it was Dustin’s heartbeat. One of Lucas’ hands had moved from the other boy’s cheek down to rest on his hip, casually holding the bard close to him. _

_ “W-What are you—” _

_ “I like you, Dustin,” he whispered. “Always have, and always will. Wanna be my boyfriend?” _

_ The bard’s answer came in the form of a pair of lips on his, and the ranger was sure that was the best answer anyone could hope for. _

* * *

If he could travel back in time, Lucas would definitely hit himself in the head for being so stupid back then. Like he’d found out later, Dustin had had feelings for him for years — before Suzie, before Max, and probably before Eleven as well. They could’ve been together long before their senior year. Him being stupid had cost them so much time.

“You know I would do this all day,” the ranger said, “but I’m getting really old now, so can we skip to the part where you talk to me again, please?”

He knew it probably wasn’t the best thing to say, but if he was being honest, he hadn’t tried that one before, so he had to rule out the possibility that some kind of miracles would happen and Dustin would start talking again, even if it was to yell at him. Of course, he would prefer the other man’s gentle voice, but beggars can’t be choosers, and he had been begging, after all. He was getting desperate.

* * *

_ Lucas was desperate to find his boyfriend. Dustin had been avoiding him for half of the night now. _

_ They were celebrating the contract Lucas had managed to close at a fancy venue his company had chosen, but he couldn’t celebrate because his boyfriend had decided to get mad at him for whatever reason. Sure, he might’ve had to shake too many hands too often, but he definitely hadn’t neglected the other man, had he? _

_ Half an hour and probably fifty handshakes later, the black man had excused himself to go to the bathroom. Everyone else in this place could definitely have fun without him, but he couldn’t enjoy himself while his boyfriend was being like this, and Dustin was definitely not enjoying himself either. He’d decided to hide in there while trying to call the love of his life, and once the bard finally picked up, they could just leave early. It had been established that he wouldn’t be able to find the curly-haired man if the guy had decided to hide from him. _

_ Or not, since as soon as he pressed the green button, a familiar ringtone went off in one of the closed bathroom stalls, along with an even more familiar curse. _

_ “Dustin?” Lucas asked. “You’re in there?” _

_ He was met with absolute silence, which, considering what had just occurred, might’ve been an answer on its own. _

_ “If you’re mad at me, can you at least do it from out here?” _

_ A minute of silence passed before the door finally swung open and he was facing the one person he’d been looking for all night, looking undoubtedly annoyed. _

_ “Look, I’m sorry,” he sighed, “I know I’ve been busy tonight and wasn’t able to—” _

_ Dustin let out an almost inaudible huff that Lucas would’ve missed it if he hadn’t been friends with the boy for roughly two decades and been dating for half of that time. _

_ “What?” The ranger’s eyebrows furrowed. “So what are you mad about?” _

_ This time, the huff was louder, and so was the message. ‘Figure it out yourself’. _

_ “C’mon, Dustin,” he begged, “how am I supposed to know? I thought things were going well. Even Janice said she—” _

_ There was another huff so quiet that Lucas would’ve missed it if he hadn’t seen the shorter man’s chest move as he exhaled. Suddenly, things started to make sense. _

_ “Wait,” the taller man smiled, “are you jealous of my assistant?” _

_ His boyfriend scowled and turned away, which, according to the Dustin translator in his head, was a loud and clear ‘duh’. _

_ “Oh my god,” he cried. “You’re jealous of Janice.” Lucas knew he shouldn’t be smiling when his boyfriend was fuming, but this situation was just too amusing. “You’ve been listening to the office gossip, haven’t you?”  _

_ He tried to put his hand on Dustin’s shoulder, but the other man shrugged it off. Not letting that deter his attempts, the ranger wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s waist and spun him around so they were now face-to-face. _

_ “Baby,” he said softly while his boyfriend tried his best not to look him in the eyes, “Janice already has a girlfriend.” _

_ Needless to say, the moment Dustin’s eyebrows disappeared in his hair was Lucas’ favorite moment of the night. “Didn’t see that coming, did you?” He chuckled. “But even if she was straight as a ruler, I can’t believe you thought I’d have eyes on anyone but you.” _

_ Although his boyfriend’s ability to talk hadn’t returned yet, the blush on Dustin’s cheeks spoke louder than the blue-eyed man ever would. Lucas smirked before leaning in and planting a kiss on them. “My baby seems to love staying silent,” he teased as he slowly trailed kisses down Dustin’s neck. “Think you can stay quiet until we leave this bathroom?” _

_ In the end, Dustin didn’t manage to stay silent, and they were permanently banned from the place. _

* * *

Lucas couldn’t stop the smile that was forming on his face. It had been the only time he’d been able to turn one of these silent treatments into something fun.

“Dustin, baby?” He reached for the other man’s hand. “Don’t you think it’s been long enough?”

His fingers brushed against the ring on Dustin’s finger, and the memory of the last time his fiance stopped talking to him returned. He’d never forget those two excruciating days.

* * *

_ “Seriously, what did I do wrong this time?” Lucas asked exasperatedly as he barged into Will’s studio. _

_ It was a good thing that the artist wasn’t currently working, or he would’ve been kicked out by now. Will carefully put the book he was reading down, but not without delicately marking the page with a bookmark, before turning to his guest. _

_ “This time it’s not about what you did wrong,” the shorter boy sighed, “but rather about what he thought you did.” _

_ “What did he think I did?” Lucas’ eyebrows furrowed. _

_ “Let’s see, shall we?” Will said slowly, in the tone Joyce would use whenever she wanted them to see their mistakes. “You lied to him, kept secrets from him, not to mention the curious case of the missing money, and it’s nowhere near his birthday. Now, does that sound bad to you?” _

_ “Y-Yeah,” Lucas gulped, “but—” _

_ “No buts,” Will interrupted. “He doesn’t know about your buts. What he does know is, you went to a fancy restaurant, and then someplace that isn’t home or your company.” _

_ The ranger’s eyes widened. “What? How does he know that?” _

_ “You do know he can track your phone, right?” His friend raised an eyebrow. “I’m pretty sure we can all see each other’s location, unless you’ve somehow revoked my right.” _

_ “But why would he—” _

_ “Again, all the signs were there,” Will interrupted. “Would he try to spy on a cheating boyfriend?” _

_ “But I didn’t—” _

_ “I know you didn’t,” the shorter man sighed, “but Dustin doesn’t. I don’t know, Lucas. Either change your plan, or wait and see if he’s gonna break up with you before you propose.” _

_ When Will put it that way, he didn’t exactly have a choice. He’d only gone to that restaurant to make sure everything would be perfect when he took Dustin out at the end of the month, and he’d gone to get the ring after that. He’d only wanted to give the love of his life the best proposal anyone could ever hope for, but now his boyfriend believed that he’d been cheating on him. If he knew Dustin, and he definitely did, then the longer this went on, the more terrible his scenarios would become, and he definitely wouldn’t last until the end of the week, let alone the month. _

_ The ring was already in his suitcase. He guessed today would have to be the day. _

_ “Okay,” Lucas whispered, “I’m coming in today. Wish me luck, Will.” _

_ “As if you need it,” the other man snorted. “He thinks you hung the moon.” _

* * *

“Baby?” Lucas tried again. “Don’t you think five years is long enough?”

Like usual, the steady beeping of the vital signs monitor was the only thing answering him.

Five years ago, he’d proposed to the love of his life. Five years ago, Dustin had said yes. Five years ago, they’d gone out to celebrate with their friends. Five years ago, they’d called an uber home.

“Next week is Mike’s birthday,” the black man cleared his throat, “what do you think we should get him?”

The curly-haired man just lied there, right next to his fiancé, but worlds apart.

“Right,” the ranger chuckled and nodded. “A new coat would be nice. I’ll make sure to throw in some 3 Musketeers for little Dusty as well. I know he’s Mike’s kid, but the little devil loves nougat even more than his uncle Dustin.”

Five years ago, there had been an accident.

Lucas sighed and gave Dustin’s hand a squeeze. “I know I’m getting old now,” he said softly, “but I’ll do this every day until the end of time for you.”

He leaned down and planted a kiss on the sleeping man’s forehead.

Five years ago, Dustin had talked to Lucas for the last time.  
  


**Author's Note:**

> So, what do you think? Like it? Hate it? Let me know in the comments below.
> 
> * * *
> 
> Come yell at me @[trashmouthdiangelo](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/trashmouthdiangelo) on tumblr.
> 
> * * *
> 
> Small thanks to @[castrateyourhumanpride](https://archiveofourown.org/users/castrateyourhumanpride), @[shewasthewind](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shewasthewind/), and @[trashmouthTM](https://archiveofourown.org/users/deasar/pseuds/trashmouthTM) for proofreading this, and my other WIPs as well.


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